What would you do?

16 Comments

1. Shanna WilliamsOctober 27,2024 at 12:27PM UTC

   Probably would be good conversation to have with management before filing . Also make sure you fit the criteria below.

   As of July 1, 2024, the new federal overtime rule increases the minimum salary threshold for exempt employees from $35,568 per year to $43,888 per year. This means that employees who earn less than $844 per week must be paid overtime if they work more than 40 hours per week.

   The rule also increases the salary threshold for highly compensated employees (HCEs) from $107,432 to $132,964 per year. On January 1, 2025, the threshold will increase again for both exempt employees and HCEs to $58,656 and $151,164 per year, respectively.

2. AnonymousOctober 27,2024 at 12:55PM UTC

   OP: my error. I’m not getting paid over time.

3. Lisa McCartneyOctober 27,2024 at 12:57PM UTC

   It said does not recieve overtime pay.

4. maria roseOctober 27,2024 at 1:12PM UTC

   Continuing the response given to the OP, there seems to be a preconception that the the work assignments can not be completed without working overtime, which means that the concept of how this work is done doesn’t match between the employer and the employee.

   The employer is paying the employee for 40 hours of work performed. That doesn’t include time taken for breaks/rest periods/bathroom , etc which are not paid time. The employees may have the perception that all of the time they spend in “work mode” including breaks of any kind are paid hours and therefore don’t understand how they can’t get the work assignment done in 40 hours because they are including the break time into the 40 hours they get paid for. Think about it this as an example—You start your day by getting up at 7am, have a commute time of about an hour, clock in at 9 am to start work, while also enjoying a coffee break for 15 minutes, you stop for lunch around noon for an hour, return to work at 1pm and take any 15 minute break later and clock out at 5 pm to commute home. You may think that you were working and earning 8 hours of work but technically you were only working 6,5 hours but if you would have to work later than 5 pm to have worked for 8 hours of paid time —hence the reason you think that you should be be paid for 50 hours because you are assuming that your break time is paid too. In top of this, the assignments given are evaluated by woe efficiency experts who do not include break time into the time needed to complete the job. That’s a separate matter. If you want to be paid by the hour that you are clocked in then switch to being paid for an hourly wage. Being paid by salary, you are being paid by the work assignment to be completed regardless of whether you take more time ( from your personal time) over the week. You , the OP, should understand this is how being paid by salary differs from being paid by the hour. You may have more control over how you spread your at work time but you still have to complete the assignment.

5. Bonny FilandrinoOctober 27,2024 at 1:40PM UTC

   She said she doesn't receive overtime!

6. AnonymousOctober 27,2024 at 1:51PM UTC

   Sure you can try filing a claim against them for unpaid wages.

7. AnonymousOctober 27,2024 at 2:37PM UTC

   You mention you are salaried, which indicates how you are paid. Are you also classified as exempt? If you are are then you are not paid for your time, you are paid to do a job. In the case of exempt, you are not entitled to overtime, regardless of how many hours a week you work. Someone else in this thread posted the criteria for being categorized as exempt. Give that a read.

   One of two things is happening here: either your employer did a poor job of explaining what your classification is or you have a misunderstanding of when overtime laws apply.

8. AnonymousOctober 27,2024 at 6:14PM UTC

   If you are a salaried, exempt employee, then you do not receive overtime pay. It's VERY common for exempt employees to work 50+ hours per week. If you don't like it, then you should find another job and go back to punching a time clock.

9. AnonymousOctober 28,2024 at 11:38AM UTC

   OP: I have worked salaried for more years than I wish to admit. However, when I did work over my 40 hours I received some type of compenasion. At this current job, I’m not the only employee working 60+ hours per week. The only acknowledgement we get is, ‘you’re not doing enough.’

   I will also mention that up to a year ago this position was hourly, but the company was paying too much overtime.

10. AnonymousOctober 27,2024 at 7:36PM UTC

    It's not against any federal law, as employment laws are left to the states to regulate. Before stirring up the hornet's nest, it would be best to start with your state's Department of Labor to see if any statutes provide guidelines for paying overtime based on a work week of over 40 hours. I live in Delaware, and a few years back (around the start of COVID), they passed laws requiring overtime pay for anyone working more than 40 hours, regardless of whether they were tagged as exempt or non-exempt. I had to take a class on a Saturday needed for some of our licensing, and I was given the option of a day off during the pay period or overtime for working Saturday. I chose overtime pay, as I needed more money than a day. I was salaried.

11. AnonymousOctober 27,2024 at 8:23PM UTC

    It’s not uncommon to give more than we receive. And depends on your industry too. However, keep track for a few months of your hours then speak with your manager about a compressed work week or a comp day here and there. They may say it’s the nature of the job. Regardless of what you knew prior to the job it’s clear all of you are working 40+ hour weeks and perhaps they need to hire another person. Have a 1:1 with your manager and get their take. Request compensation in time. Maybe that will help ease the amount of hours you’re working. Or you may want to find a position that fits your background and lifestyle better.

12. AnonymousOctober 27,2024 at 11:02PM UTC

    If you are a salaried employee, and your role does meet the requirements for the role being salaried/exempt, not a violation of the federal law. That is, unfortunately, the downfall of being a salaried employee. I live that life and basically am on 7 days a week.

13. AnonymousOctober 27,2024 at 11:34PM UTC

    This 100%

14. MeloyeloOctober 28,2024 at 6:10AM UTC

    If I were in your position, I would first review my employment classification to see if I'm exempt or non-exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). If I'm non-exempt and working over 40 hours without compensation, I’d document my hours and raise the issue with HR or my manager to clarify expectations and see if they can address the workload. If no resolution comes from that, I would consider reporting the issue to the Department of Labor, as unpaid overtime for non-exempt employees is a violation of federal law. Protecting my rights and well-being would be my priority.

15. maria roseOctober 29,2024 at 7:54PM UTC

    Not sure if this is the OP of the post or someone else but my comment was not denying any of the paid covered time at work as it is understood that work employment includes paid on the clock time. What I was trying to refer to is that there is less control over the time factor between an hourly employee and a salary employee. A salary employee gets paid same pay regardless every week—as I understand how a salary pay is calculated—the employer figures out that amount based off an average of 40 hours of work including a certain amount extra beyond that 40 hours making it if broken down into an hourly rate of higher wages than a typical hourly wage employee who would get overtime for any time on the clock depending on state ( geographic) employment laws. A salary employee will get paid the exact same pay whether they complete the work assignment in less time or for some reason they don’t finish it in weeks time. Most work assignments are based on an average worker completing it in a pre-determined time frame.

    The OP of this post has given through their comments that they have found the work assignments are taking them longer than the 40 hours they are devoting as time working for their salary and want to be paid overtime for the extra time spent completing the work assignments. The answer is simple—convert to an hourly wage employee—which does may mean working on a prescribed schedule that may not be as flexible as the current schedule as a salary employee has ( most salary employees don’t clock in using an hourly clock but a clock in at work notation with no set in stone schedule) Switching to the hourly employee pay system will get the OP overtime pay when it occurs. But I don’t think it’s really the overtime pay or not paid that is the underlying issue here. The OP is questioning the assignment workload as being too much work in the designated time which is another discussion factor—how does one approach their supervisor about the workload being too hard to handle in the given time frame.

16. maria roseNovember 2,2024 at 2:47PM UTC

    Coming back and re-reading this OP stated that originally they were paid in this position as an hourly employee but the company switched the position to salary because of overtime costs. So there’s a disconnect between the work schedule and the efficiency desired by the employer and the employees , which from the partially covered information given by this OP was a discussion already at the workplace. It appears this is a private run company with limited assets that at present requires a bit more input than usual to keep thriving—we don’t why this business has a cash flow problem but they did make an agreement with their employees to pay them a set salary that this employee is not satisfied with concerning the effort given is not paying enough compensation. The OP was given the choice to go in salary and keep their job but it appears that it was a reluctantly agreed. Complaining about it is not going to change the facts. Obviously the OP feels underpaid and undervalued for their efforts and wants to be compensated but the current employer can’t afford to pay. The choice is clear ( after reading the additional information given) the OP wants to be paid more, the employer can’t afford to pay more—the OP should be considering looking for a new job that will offer a higher pay than current employer. If that’s what they want because they will not get extra pay at present job.